Roseanne Barr: 'Phyllis Diller was a genius'

Roseanne Barr: 'Phyllis Diller was a genius'

The veteran star passed away on Monday (20Aug12), aged 95, and celebrities like Barbra Streisand, Joan Rivers and Whoopi Goldberg are among those who have paid tribute to the pioneer.

Now Barr has recalled her memories of Diller in a piece for news site TheDailyBeast.com, revealing the huge impact the funnywoman's stand-up acts had on her as a kid.

She writes, "All hail and observe a moment of silence - a genius has vacated this space and left us here to remember her life and her work.

"I remember hearing her records as a child. My dad collected comedy records, and what I loved the most about her was her laugh. She was the only comic I saw who laughed at her own jokes, and I found that funnier than hell. I stole that from her, but she viewed it as more a tribute than a lift..."

Barr admits Diller never believed in God and she often joked about heaven.

She continues, "I asked her if she believed in life after death, and she threw back her head and laughed that laugh, and said, 'How in the hell would that work? Liz Taylor had about eight husbands or something. What would it be like when they all got together, a big gangbang or something? Hey, wait a minute - maybe that would be heaven!'

"She was an absurdist. She really liked men, too, and, at age 94, they were still taking her to dinner. To sit in her presence was like turning on a lamp. She is gone and I am happy for her. I imagine her shock right about now, when G-d opens the gates and places a crown upon her head. She'll be pleasantly surprised if it turns out that all of her atheist ideas were wrong. I know she'll laugh her ass off if that happens, and I hope it does, because then maybe I can see her again."